Man hospitalized after shooting self while in police custody

By and Nick Ochsner| February 28, 2018 at 10:04 PM EST - Updated August 14 at 4:52 AM

KINGS MOUNTAIN, NC (WBTV) - A man is in critical condition after shooting himself while in police custody in Kings Mountain Saturday.

According to the Kings Mountain Police Department, 46-year-old John Roger White Jr was able to shoot himself while in custody around 3:48 a.m.

White, described as a white male, was initially arrested on Canterbury Road in a traffic stop.

White was a passenger in a vehicle that was stopped when officers located what appeared to be illegal drugs.

Officers say White offered no resistance and was cooperative when he was arrested.

During the time in which he was placed into custody, White sustained a gunshot wound to his head and is currently in critical condition. According to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations (NCSBI), Whit was in the sally port area of the Kings Mountain Police Department at the time of the shooting.

There's no word on how he was able to shoot himself while in custody.

Police had previously refused to release any information about White or the circumstances surrounding his arrest but did release the information on Wednesday in response to a public records request from WBTV.

The incident is currently and actively being investigated by the NCSBI.

There were no additional comments due to the current pending investigation.